The Invisible Man

“The Invisible Man” was a novella penned by H.G. Wells in 1897 and popularized to succeeding generations by the classic 1933 motion picture starring Claude Rains as Griffin, a scientist who develops an invisibility theory.  Griffin postulates that by changing a person’s refractive index to that of air, the subject’s body would neither absorb nor reflect light and, thereby, achieve a state of invisibility.  He ultimately uses this process on himself, attains invisibility, cannot return to a visible state, and, as a result, is driven to insanity.

You may be asking yourself, “what does this have to do with my job search?”  At first blush, one might discern no connection between the respective subject matter of the story and that of your job search.  The surprising answer, however, is “more than you can possibly imagine.”

Consider for a moment the purpose of your job search.  If you are thinking “to find a job,” then you are only partially correct.  The purpose of a job search for the vast majority of seekers is not simply to find a job, but to find the right job – the job fulfilling a litany of different job-seeker requirements in areas including compensation, challenge, advancement, and geography to name just a few.

If your purpose is to find the right job, then you need to begin by developing or securing materials that will define and describe you to a prospective employer.  These materials may include a resume, cover letter, letters of recommendation, a portfolio, certifications, licenses, and a host of other such materials specific to the particular employment search.  Of course, the quality of these materials will be critical to your potential job-hunting success.

Assuming that these materials are of impeccable quality, however, what should be the next step in your process?  Quite obviously, the answer is to commence a job search.  Given that your goal is to find the right job, the underlying, more significant question is “how will you conduct an effective job search?”

The information and other resources available to today’s job-seeker are staggering in their volume and scale.  How will you efficiently employ the resources available to optimize the success of your efforts?

In a sense, you – as a job-seeker – are very much like a political candidate or a product or brand seeking recognition in a crowded marketplace.  How will you capture the attention of those who might might be searching for a candidate like you or who may be of benefit to you in your search?

To gain optimal exposure and recognition within your market, you need to develop a plan, an organized course of action enabling you to systematically utilize all available job-seeking resources to your maximum benefit.  Too many job candidates employ a haphazard approach in their job searches; thereby, leaving their job-hunting success, careers, and futures to chance.   Even if these candidates find jobs (as most all will ultimately do), it is unlikely that they will find the right opportunities.  And, since one job influences the next job and so on, one can only speculate on the damage done to such careers.

Without a plan, its execution, and effective materials promoting a candidate, the job-hunting process is very much like that of Griffin, the mad scientist.  Your efforts will produce relative “invisibility” in the employment market, make it difficult for you to return to the right career track, and utlimately become a source of concern and vexation in your life.